ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: branch · clip · pass · fan · court · arm · shower · wind

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. clip — for paper
  3. branch — a division
  4. shower — to wash
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. pass — a permit
  13. wind — moving air
  14. court — of a king
  15. clip — to cut
  16. shower — rain
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. clip — a video
  21. wind — moving air
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. arm — a part of something

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com